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Saturday, 24 May 2014

Second Edition Versions of Charles Jay Harwood Novels

Since publishing my first novel, the Shuttered Room some
years ago and written three thrillers since, have developed a writing style,
not apparent in my earlier work. This has spurred a redraft of my earlier
novels. This brings the narrative voice in line with my later novels. Second
editions of all my novels are now the result. These second edition thrillers
are indicated by the ‘second edition (March 2014)’ notice within the copyright
page.

Early Success in Writing

New Editions of
Charles Jay Harwood books

The Shuttered Room hit the best selling list in
psychological thrillers almost immediately after publishing. But early success
is not always a good thing for a writer, if the first novel is looked back upon
from the viewpoint of one who has since improved upon writing style. This is not
to be confused with editorial issues (spelling, punctuation and grammar) for
these have always remained intact. The issues lie with making the words flow,
sentences structure and employing active writing. In other words, finding a personal
writing style in thrillers.

Perfection in Writing Fiction

This is why I believe success is more beneficial for
the author if it occurs later in his/her career rather than earlier on. The
writer cannot help but hone writing skills with the completion of each novel.
As can be seen from this blog, articles are dedicated to ways making improvements
in writing such as:

Avoiding passive writing.

Using colourful verbs.

Cutting out the deadwood of too many adjectives and
adverbs.

Finding new and original ways of describing something.

Writing dynamic dialogue.

Making characters more believable.

Pacing the novel.

And much more.

New Editions of Thrillers by Charles Jay Harwood

Second Edition Marker

I am still proud of these first editions of my books (these
remain unmarked on the copyright page). These earlier editions are still out
there and reviews will continue to be written on their strengths, but these 2nd
editions novels possess the blueprint of my later novels. I must however resist
the temptation of releasing third edition novels in ten years from now, typical
of the perfectionist. Every creation will inevitably have flaws, and the question arises, when
to stop.

Developing Writing Style with New Edition Thrillers

Redrafting all my novels has taken several months but feel
the effort has been worth it. The narrative voice is tighter, the actions scenes
more dynamic and each word made to work harder within the story. Working on new
editions of novels is great for reflecting upon past work and finding ways of making further improvements. Reading past work also makes the writer see how far he/she has developed in the genre concerned.
It is rather like looking back at old drawings and seeing for the first time that
the shading could have been smoothed out a little or how different utensils could
have created a certain effect.

Writing New Editions of Books

Second Editions of all my books are now available on Kindle,
large print and paperback. Look out for the 2nd Edition (March 2014)
notice within the copyright page, and this will indicate this novel is of the latest
version.